Meet Benni, the robot created by BYU students that could help kids with autism

Provo • A group of Brigham Young University students wants Benni to be a child with autism’s best friend."We often say we want Benni to be the first friend of many friends to come," said Jared Workman, a BYU student and founder of Early Intervention Robotics, or EI Robotics.Benni — recently renamed from Nelli — is the company’s first product. The robot looks similar to BB-8 from “Star Wars” and is designed to supplement therapy for children on the autism